Yoga’s
the latest fad. Everyone’s doing it, including Christians. Churches are
now offering “Christian yoga.” (An oxymoron, if there ever was one.) What’s
up with fitness clubs and houses of God promoting yoga? Is yoga just good
exercise, or is there more to it than that? Those who practice yoga techniques
- especially professed Chhristians--should know what they’re being exposed
to.

Authentic
yoga spiritual/religious disciplines derive from Eastern religious beliefs.
There are several different forms of yoga:

“For the Hindu,
on the journey to Spiritual-Realization, the many Yoga/Hindu spiritual
disciplines take into consideration all aspects of one's being. The
classic Yogas are progressive in nature; i.e., Karma Yoga (ethics),
Bhakti Yoga (devotion), Raja Yoga (meditation) and Jnana Yoga (inner
wisdom or enlightenment).

“These are the
classic four yogas within which are several other forms of Yoga. Hatha
Yoga (worshipful poses), for example, is part of Raja Yoga training.
Some of the other forms of Yoga are Nada Yoga (music), Mantra and Japa
Yoga (chanting and on beads) and Kundalini Yoga (study of the psychic
centers or chakras).”[1]

Yoga
has been taken out of its Hindu roots and given a whole new meaning. Subhas
R. Tiwari, professor of the Hindu University of America, is not a fan
of “Christian yoga” and explains why:

“Today we are witnessing
an innitiative toward yoga from ordinary Christians whose positive physical,
mental and spiritual heath and well being experienced as a result of
"engaging " yoga cannot be denied or ignored. This 5,000-year-old system
is perhaps the best known, most accessible and cost effective health
and beauty program around. Yoga is also much more, as it was intended
by the Vedic seers as an instrument which can lead one to apprehend
the Absolute, Ultimate Reality, called the Brahman Reality, or God.
If this attempt to co-opt yoga into their own tradition continues, in
several decades of incessantly spinning the untruth as truth through
re-labelings such as "Christian yoga," who will know that yoga is--or
was--part of Hindu culture?”[2]

Government
schools have embraced
religious pluralism and are now offering yoga as a physical education
course, even though yoga is a fundamental part of a religious system.
Granted, most schools don’t teach classical yoga; they incorporate snippets
of it in their exercise program. Imagine the outrage if some brave soul
were to attempt to introduce as part of the physical education course,
“Fitness According to God,” that aims to get children to adopt biblical
principles for good mind/body health. The ACLU would file a lawsuit faster
than the speed of a 56K modem.

The
challenge of religious pluralism is that it doesn’t require knowing anything
about other cultures or religions. And let’s be real. Most American’s
don’t care to learn about other cultures, which is why they’re ignorant
of religious belief systems. This includes Christianity, even though polls
show that more than 80% of Americans say they’re Christians. Uh-huh. And
Muhammad Ali was the greatest prima ballerina of all time.

Here’s
something you probably didn’t know. The Hindu community is unhappy about
the effort to separate yoga from Hinduism so they’ve started a group called
“Reclaiming Yoga.” They say they’ve had it up to here with fitness clubs
that characterize yoga as exercise. (They have no one to blame but themselves.
Hindu gurus who settled in the west are responsible for the commercialization
of yoga.) David Orr, columnist for the London Daily Telegraph, tells us
that, “The Indian government is furious that yoga practices dating back
thousands of years are being ‘stolen’ by gurus and fitness instructors
in Europe and the United States.”[3]

Yoga
is a $30 billion-a-year business in America, so the Reclaiming Yoga government
task force have their work cut out for them. David Orr goes on to say,
“The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued 134 patents on yoga accessories,
150 yoga-related copyrights and 2,315 yoga trademarks, says the Indian
task force. It also says that Britain has approved at least 10 trademarks
relating to yoga training aids that are mentioned in ancient texts.”

Many
Christians have been duped into thinking that yoga is just relaxation
and exercise. Nothing could be further from the truth. Classical yoga
is intended to put one into an altered
state of consciousness. Believers who think they’re “just exercising”
are being swept into a counterfeit religion.

Not
all religions are equal, as liberals would have us believe. Orthodox Christianity
teaches that there is one true God. God as the all-knowing, all-powerful
being who created the universe and still rules it today. “Come, let us
bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is
our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care”
(Psalm 95:6,7). Moreover, orthodox Christianity teaches that the Bible
is the inspired Word of God. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because
it is the power of God for salvation of everyone who believes”(Romans
1:16). On the other hand, “Progressive Christians” (PC’s) believe that
the Bible is a book of myths and legends. PC’s “read the Bible symbolically
or allegorically, as a collection of interesting stories to take whatever
meaning out of that pleases them. This allows them to reject various portions
of the Bible they disagree with. Liberals label their interpretation as
a “critical” approach, which essentially allows most of their theology
to consist of finding ways to criticize the Bible, rather than actually
trying to determine what it says.”[4]

PC’s
see nothing wrong with yoga. They see nothing wrong with Christian mysticism
either. But that’s another article.

According
to God’s Word, mystical practices of any sort are evil. Romans 12:9 instructs
Christians to, “Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.” Sooner or later
the sharks will pull Christians who wade into mystic waters under. Jesus
gave this warning in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate.
For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction,
and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that
leads to life, and only a few find it.” Eastern mysticism leads to destruction.

Professor
Tiwari is an authority on classical yoga. He believes that yoga cannot
be separated from its spiritual center. “The simple, immutable fact,”
he says, “is that yoga originated from the Vedic or Hindu culture. Its
techniques were not adopted by Hinduism, but originated from it." These
facts need to be unequivocally stated in light of some of the things being
written to the contrary by yoga teachers. The effort to separate yoga
from Hinduism must be challenged because it runs counter to the fundamental
principles upon which yoga itself is premised, the yamas (restraints)
and niyamas (observances). These ethical tenets and religious practices
are the first two limbs of the eight-limbed ashtanga yoga system which
also includes asana (postures), pranayama (breath control), pratyahara
(sense withdrawal), dharana (concentration), dhyana (meditation) and samadhi
(contemplation/Self Realization). Efforts to separate yoga from its spiritual
center reveal ignorance of the goal of yoga.”[5]

If your
church is integrating “Christian yoga” or any other New Age practice into
its services, it’s incumbent on you to speak up. Gently lay out
your concerns to your pastor. Explain that yoga is a Hindu or Buddhist
practice and has no place in a Christian church. 2 Corinthians. 6:14 says,
“For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship
can light have with darkness?”

Many
pastors are unaware that some yoga practices, especially meditation to
achieve an altered state of consciousness, can be spiritually damaging.
If your pastor chooses to ignore your warning, you might want to consider
finding a new church home.

Subscribe to the NewsWithViews Daily News Alerts!

Enter Your E-Mail Address:

To all
you Christians who want to get in shape, I say halleluiah! I’m all for
physical fitness. To stay in shape I’ve taken ballet (for the novice),
jazz dance, aerobics, stretch classes, played tennis and racquetball,
hiked in the mountains, and gone on brisk walks. All of these things will
keep you in great shape. You don’t need yoga to stay fit.

Marsha
West is the Founder and Editor of the E-Mail Brigade News Report, an online
news report for conservative people of faith. Marsha is a freelance writer
specializing in Christian worldview. She is a regular contributor to NewsWithViews.com,
Alainsnewsletter.com, CapitolHillCoffeeHouse.com, plus her commentaries
appear in MichNews.com and bibleteacher.org.

Marsha
is also designer and webmaster of a Christian apologetics website, On
Solid Rock Resources. She is currently writing a series of children's
books for homeschoolers. Marsha and her husband reside in historic Jacksonville
Oregon.

Many
pastors are unaware that some yoga practices, especially meditation to
achieve an altered state of consciousness, can be spiritually damaging.
If your pastor chooses to ignore your warning, you might want to consider
finding a new church home.